Following the independence of South Sudan, Insight on Conflict will be producing a weekly round-up of the news. To subscribe to receive the updates via email, please contact joel@insightonconflict.org or complete the form below.
News roundup
- Some progress was made toward resolving the oil crisis. Sudan and South Sudan have signed a non-aggression pact. The two countries have also agreed to co-operate on the transfer back to South Sudan of some 300,000 ethnic South Sudanese living in Sudan. The oil crisis has begun to impact both the Sudanese and South Sudanese economies.
- South Sudan has signed an agreement to build a pipeline to Djibouti via Ethiopia.
- In Blue Nile, the Sudanese army says it has taken control of a rebel-held area. The UN has launched an appeal for $145 million to help the thousands of refugees fleeing the conflict in Blue Nile and South Kordofan.
- The Darfur Regional Authority created to promote development has been launched. Establishing the authority was part of a peace deal between the Sudanese government and the Liberation and Justice Movement rebel group.
- Amnesty International has criticised China and Russia for supplying arms to Sudan. Amnesty say the weapons are being used against civilians in Darfur.
- The UN has warned of a looming food crisis in South Sudan if urgent action is not taken.
News in detail
Blue Nile, South Kordofan and Abyei
Reuters: Sudan army says it has seized rebel-held area in border state 11 Feb: Sudan's armed forces said on Saturday they had seized an area held by rebels after a battle lasting two days in the border state of Blue Nile where fighting has been raging for five months. Read more
AFP: $145m UN appeal for Sudan refugees 10 Feb: The UN refugee agency said on Friday it needs $145 million (110 million euros) in extra funds to help thousands fleeing fighting in Sudan's Blue Nile and South Kordofan states. Read more
North-South relations
BBC: Sudan and South Sudan sign peace pact, says Thabo Mbeki 11 Feb: Sudan and South Sudan have signed a non-aggression pact, the chief mediator at crisis talks between the two says. Read more
AFP: Sudan, South Sudan sign returnees deal - agency 12 Feb: Sudan and South Sudan agreed on Sunday to cooperate in the transfer of more than 300,000 people to the South, the official SUNA news agency said. Read more
Reuters: Trafigura deals in disputed Sudanese oil 08 Feb: Swiss-based commodities trader Trafigura has bought oil which the South Sudanese government claims was seized by Sudan, industry sources told Reuters, and is now in a legal dispute over ownership. Read more
South Sudan
CNN: UN warns of food crisis in South Sudan 08 Feb: Less than a week after the United Nations declared an end to the famine in Somalia, a new report from the world body says millions of people in South Sudan will now face hunger if urgent action is not taken. Read more
AFP: South Sudan signs oil pipeline deal to Djibouti via Ethiopia 09 Feb: South Sudan has signed an agreement to build an oil pipeline to the port of Djibouti via neighbouring Ethiopia, officials said on Thursday, after Juba shut down its only export route via former foe Sudan. Read more
Africa Review: South Sudan halts printing of local currency 11 Feb: South Sudan has stopped printing of its local currency to avoid devaluation, in the wake of the shutdown of oil production due to squabbles with Sudan. Read more
Reuters: South Sudan oil output at risk in 2012 - IEA 10 Feb: South Sudanese oil output could remain absent from world markets in the near future, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday, as the country struggles to reach a revenue-sharing agreement with its northern neighbour. Read more
VOA: South Sudan businesses fear oil shutdown fallout 08 Feb: When South Sudan decided to shut down its oil production to protest against alleged injustices from the north, the country was also cutting off 98 per cent of its revenue. Businessmen in the south are particularly concerned about the economic consequences of the shutdown. Read more
Sudan
Reuters: Sudan inflation rises to 19.3% in December, driven by food 07 Feb: Annual inflation in Sudan accelerated to 19.3 per cent in January, from 18.9 per cent in December, as food costs rose, the government said on Tuesday. Read more
Reuters: Sudan's currency hits low as oil row hits economy 06 Feb: Sudan's currency fell to a record low on the black market on Monday as people rushed to convert their savings into dollars, fearing a dispute with South Sudan over oil revenues could worsen the country's economic crisis. Read more
Darfur
BBC: Darfur Regional Authority launched 08 Feb: Sudan's president has launched a body intended to kick-start development in the war-torn western region of Darfur. Read more
VOA: Rights group criticizes Russia and China for supplying Sudan with weapons 09 Feb: Amnesty International says that weapons from Russia and China are being used by the Sudanese government to commit serious human rights violations against civilians. Read more
